SANParks.org ForumsDiscussing the National Parks of South Africa2012-09-12T20:35:35+02:00https://www.sanparks.org/forums/feed.php?f=27&t=648862012-09-12T20:35:35+02:002012-09-12T20:35:35+02:00https://www.sanparks.org/forums/viewtopic.php?t=64886&p=1786949#p1786949 In the meantime notes from my travels will be posted on my blog at http://www.tarajiblue.com/

]]>2012-09-02T18:56:10+02:002012-09-02T18:56:10+02:00https://www.sanparks.org/forums/viewtopic.php?t=64886&p=1780178#p1780178 I only wish I would have been there for longer so I'd have more experiences to share

I've loved sharing it with you on the forums, it's helped me relive memories and kept my passion for Africa well and truly alive. Needless to say, we will be back to KTP, it has captured our hearts and our souls and it is one of the few places in the world that we hope to return too time and time again!

I thought it'd be a fitting end to share with you my top 5 experiences and some photos that didn't naturally 'fit' into the trip report.

My top 5 experiences:

1. Braiiing! I cannot communicate just how much it means to me (a 'city career' girl) to be able to stand in the open air, getting smoky, with hair unbrushed and feeling the sand brush against my face in the wind whilst making a fire and braaing. It's the real me, one few people see and one I have so little chance to embrace at the moment. It makes me feel alive, it reminds me that gadgets, gizmos and designer dresses are not the 'norm', that I am a nature lover who thrives on the great outdoors...and I am proud of it.

2. The cheetah chase....not because of what we saw (which was amazing!) but because we were 'brave enough' to take a risk and make a decision to leave a sighting to find the herd and see what would happened. It was a huge gamble and one that, thankfully, paid off

3. Killiekrankie camp - isolation and solitude at its best. The perfect mix of luxury and wilderness. The sunrises and sunsets tore my heart in two when I realised this was a limited time sighting, on that I would have to live without at the end of the holiday.

4. Finding the barn owls in the water tank at Killie. Not the 'idyllic' wildlife sighting, but I was so, so, so close to the bird I most admire and I was crying into the lens with joy. It was overwhelming to be so close to a dream sighting and for the owl to be so at ease with my presence.

5. This is going to sound really odd.....but to stand at the KTP entry point with one foot in Botswana and one in South Africa was surreal. I have always wanted to visit Botswana..the travel brochures and websites do a great job of making it sound like an impenetrable water world that's VERY expensive to navigate/ visit and impossible to visit on a self drive - and here I was, at a border post, with my right toes peeping into this country that had been on my wish list for many years!

This probably presents a very different view of the mariek that's written the TR to date, but I hope it communicates just how much I love being in Africa....despite being an amateur wildlife photographer, it's not only the wildlife sightings that keep me returning, it's the country too!

And what's next? ..... well, we've sold our house and are buying a place further from a city and closer to nature....the main criteria being I have a have a garden where I can braai daily

Here's a few photos that didn't 'fit' into the TR, but I thought you might like to see them...

It was inevitable that the day would be a bit of a write off, having been awake all night. I had become far too obsessed with the sheer amount of barn owls paying us a visit at Killiekrankie in the dead of the night and I had become attuned to hearing that all too familiar ‘chink’ of their claws as they landed on the fence around our cabin’s deck. With each landing I’d wake from my light slumber as if a baby was howling my name, and I’d leap for my camera and throw myself to the end of my bed to try and catch a shot through the huge picture windows of our cabin. With each attempt I’d hear my husband’s muffled laughs from under his bed covers as I got more and more frustrated with my failed attempts. Obsessed could not even begin describe my ambition to capture an image of a barn owl that evening.

Sharing my tales of woe with Jacques (the camp manager) the next morning he promptly smiled and beckoned me over to cabin two - there, bold and brass and in broad daylight were two barn owls sleeping on the water tanks. I didn’t know whether to cry with joy or despair - but either way I relished the moment to be so close to these incredible creatures.

It was all my hubby could do to drag me away from Kieliekrankie that day - and with heavy hearts (but feeling very privileged for our time there) - we checked out, vowing to return as soon as possible...heck, I’ll admit, we even discussed relocating

We were very aware that this was our last full day in the park and, wanting to make the most of every opportunity, we headed north to the 14th borehole in search of the nesting barn owls. Luck was not on our side, so we returned south towards Twee and en-route we picnicked at the Kamqua picnic site, spending every minute possible spotting wildlife. We were lucky enough to stumble upon some unusual behaviour from a bateleur who was on the Aoub riverbed, wings spread, seemingly heating his belly and underside of this wings in the afternoon sun. Such a comical sight!

3-4 km north of the Montrose waterhole we stumbled upon the most amazing sighting - we found a family of curious barn owl chicks in a roadside tree! 4 chicks were huddled into a sociable weavers nest, taking it in turns to rotate position and peer into the outside world. One wee chick was particularly enamoured with a secretary bird prowling under their tree, so much so that I worried he might lean over so far that he’d ‘fall out’ of the tree and reveal their nest.

That afternoon we saw an array of birds of prey - PCJs, Ospreys, Kites and Eagles appeared roadside from Monro to Houmoed, including a young gabar Goshawk who was determined to 'strut his stuff' for the ladies

We arrived at Twee later afternoon and quickly settled in - repacking for our drive to Tankwa Karoo the following day. We were visited by mongoose, huge bees and squirrels before heading over to the restaurant for a lovely meal (springbok pie is recommended) before our evening drive.

We had initially booked on the midnight drive from Twee, but a combination of freezing temperatures and all encompassing tiredness after a week in the desert forced us to an earlier evening drive.. and we were not disappointed. Anna (our guide) was fantastic and treated us to our first ever sighting of the unsociable spring hare as well as sightings of bat eared foxes, cape fox, a wild cat and a large spotted eagle owl.

We collapsed into bed that evening exhausted from the excitement of the evening, wishing we had just one more night in KTP.

Spurred on by the incredible sightings of recent days and the desire for more big cat sightings we headed out at first light back toward the Auob riverbed and promptly saw a wildcat dash into the long grasses. We hoped this was a sign of things to come, however sightings were minimal and the herds of previous days had moved on. We had to travel a considerable distance to find any springbok or wildebeest. What’s more - the carcass and some organs from the cheetah kill of the previous day was still there and largely untouched from how we’d seen it the night before. It seemed that even the scavengers had moved on.

Undeterred we pressed on and a short while later spotted the silhouette of a cat high on the riverbank. We lost her as quickly as we spotted her but we were determined to ‘hang in there’ and we scoured the horizon for any tell tale signs. We spotted two eland on the riverbank due north of us, their gazes transfixed on one location on the horizon. They did not move a muscle, simply stared, and stared and stared. We knew they’d spotted something that they were not comfortable with.Until now my gaze had been fixed on the horizon, but the unmistakable rasp of a springbok as an alarm call caused me to avert my gaze to the dry riverbed and onto a group of bushes which the bok had started to focus on. There, deep in the undergrowth was what I identified as a cheetah, crouched and ready to pounce. She made an attempt (somewhat half hearted) to pounce the bok but gave up as quickly as she started. Her cover broken she brazenly started to stalk across the riverbed - it was then I realised it was a leopard!

To my joy she started to run after a small bok on the ridge but her heart was not in it. All the while she was ‘flanked’ at a distance by a herd of about 20-30 spring bok who were determined not to flee to safety. We followed her progress for about an hour as she sent herds into a combination of mesmerized stares or utter panic, but no matter how close she got they did not run. Seemingly resigned to a breakfastless morning she eventually climbed into a tree and promptly fell asleep in perfect view by the Montrose waterhole. By this time she’d entered into the path of a wildebeest herd, and both them and the bok started to gather at the foot of the tree staring at her. They stood their ground as a conjoined herd, seemingly un-nerved and not flinching from her presence. One gemsbok even moved to stand right under the branch she was on, either clueless or seemingly for a closer look ...it soon thought better of it. We half expected (hoped!) for the leopard to leap from the tree at any moment, but she barely gave them a second glance as she relaxed on a low slung branch in the shade of the tree, legs and tail swinging happily. Once she’d fallen asleep for a while we realised she’d be there for a while and pressed on, vowing to return later to see if she’d emerge and feel hungry!

Later that day we headed over the dune road toward Kij Kij. It was the first time we travelled this road and we revelled in the stunning scenery. A couple of kms before the Tierkop waterhole I spotted a group of 4 lions - two male, two female sleeping on top of the red sand dune. I was thrilled - I was dying to see lions on the dunes and it was a great photo opportunity as the male lion opened his sleepy eyes and started to yawn and roll over. What’s more - we had the sighting totally to ourselves - no one stopped or came by the entire time we were there. Incredible! However, the lions seemed very susceptible to our car engine - it disturbed them more so than any other animal, so we turned the ignition off and used the handbrake to roll and manoeuvre as required. They quickly became inactive once more in the heat of the day so we pressed on towards Twee.

On our return journey we had a dilemma ...do we return to the leopard or lion - or try both? We opted for the leopard, but upon arrival at the tree she had slept in we saw nothing. With the leopard long gone, we decided to try our luck and see if we could make it back to the lions at the Tierkop waterhole. Luck was on our side and we arrived to find the lions waking from their slumber. We were treated to a display of yawns, ‘spooning,’ preening, romantic moments and prowling - all in the glorious golden light before sunset.

That evening we ‘battled’ with a stunning lizard who’d infiltrated our cabin in an attempt to return him to the outside world. After much coaxing he’d exited, only to return in our kitchen an hour later via a secret entrance. Cheeky!

We woke early. Wrapped in blankets we headed out onto the deck to watch the sunrise with a coffee to see if any animals would visit the waterhole. It was quiet in camp, so after a beautiful sunrise we jumped into the car and headed out to the Auob riverbed and drove right by a pair of mating leopards. We could hardly believe our luck. We followed them from the dune road to the riverbed and back again as they meandered between the bushes and long grasses, ‘enjoying themselves’ We were fortunate to spend an hour with them before they slunk off over the horizon.

With hearts pounding and wide smiles we set off to the riverbed once more, stopping dead in our tracks 10 minutes later when we spotted the unmistakable silhouette of two cheetahs high on the riverbank. Cast into shadow by the rising sun, the cheetahs were clearly on the prowl. Feeling lucky we decided there and then to take a gamble and we drove off in the direction the cheetahs were heading to find the closest herd of animals in the hope that the cheetahs would join us for breakfast later. We cracked open the thermos and enjoyed strong coffee and rusks surrounded by a herd of wildebeest and our patience paid off.

An hour later we saw two shadows on the top of the riverbank but we barely had time to register their presence before they took off at speed toward the herd, causing utter chaos and panic both inside our car and out. We scrambled for our cameras and threw ourselves towards our open windows to capture the moment. After a few seconds of chaos the cheetah locked onto one wildebeest and started to drive him away from the herd and straight towards us. Heart pounding in my ears, I took my eye away from the lens to see the cheetah running toward us at full speed and we realised she was not going to deter her path. My SO swore, I screamed and the wildebeest roared...the car filled with dust from the chase and for a second we could see nothing - we could only hear the panting of the cheetah by our side as she captured and suffocated the wildebeest right next to us. Absolutely incredible!

We stayed for an hour or so, but then decided to take a leaf out of the cheetah’s book and we headed back to Kieliekrankie for lunch.

Fancying a daytime braai we lit the fire and set about cooking a nice steak sandwich.....big mistake! We very quickly became surrounded in all directions by sociable weavers who would not be deterred from stealing our toast. Resistance was futile - it was like a scene from Hitchcock’s ‘The Birds’. We packed up and headed indoors to the safety of our kitchen to enjoy our lunch, leaving in our wake a deck full of cheeky, chirping birds. Lesson learned

Mid-afternoon we headed back down to the riverbed to see the cheetahs once more. Rested and proudly displaying a swollen belly, both cheetahs were lounging by the roadside in the golden light, their faces bathed in dried blood. I had never been so close to a cheetah before - they lay right next to our car and you could hear them pant, yawn and lick themselves clean. It was hard to recall them as fearless killing machines when they looked so much like large contented house cats. Excited by the sighting we quickly lost track of time and dusk was falling...as ever, when we’re running a little short on time, we’ll see a range of fantastic sightings that we don’t have time to stop and appreciate, including a huge eland roadside, bat eared foxes hunting, meercats, mighty eagles and the most jaw dropping sunset.

That night we settled on the deck with a Cape Red and our first ever Potjie, listening to the sounds of the African desert and watching our neighbours' flashlights dance off the dunes in search of lions. Delicious.

]]>2012-08-27T16:29:51+02:002012-08-27T16:29:51+02:00https://www.sanparks.org/forums/viewtopic.php?t=64886&p=1776267#p1776267This morning we headed off to Kieliekrankie Wilderness Camp. We had been looking forward to this so much and, therefore, after stocking up on a few essentials at Mata Mata, we headed into the dunes with huge smiles on our faces.

En-route we saw a herd of 17 giraffe, bat eared foxes, gemsbok, wildebeest and springbok, not to mention an array of beautiful birds of prey.

Of course it would have been rude not to stop off at borehole no.14 on the way to see if any of the barn owls were home, so I declared a breakfast stop and we feasted on bacon and chutney sandwiches outside the nest. This time we were a little bit lucky - someone was definitely home. Every now and then we’d catch a glimpse of a wing as the owl stretched and preened, and we’d capture the occasional stolen glimpse of a beady little eye checking us out. It was more than enough to satisfy my owl-lust, so after an hour we pressed on southwards on the main road towards Twee Rivieren.

We arrived at Kieliekrankie Wilderness Camp mid afternoon and could not wait to explore our accommodation. I barely got through the front door - thrilled by the lizards, grasshoppers and odd looking bugs gracing our doorstep. I grabbed my macro lens and set to work immediately.

Kieliekrankie is a wilderness camp of just 4 cabins perched atop the red dunes of the Kalahari. The wooden cabins are sensitively positioned to offer maximum privacy. We were in cabin 4 right at the edge of the camp and had a wonderful uninterrupted visa. Upon arrival we were informed that there were 4 lions resting on the dune opposite - the night previous they’d been at their most curious and had spent the evening trying to get into the bathroom of cabin three - tearing at the cabin’s canvas sides with their teeth. This was more than enough of a warning for me to stay well clear, so I parked myself firmly on the deck with a pair of binoculars not wishing to venture any closer.

We decided to spend the afternoon in camp to see if the lions would venture any closer. Deciding on an early braai we lit the logs, grabbed a beer and settled on the deck all eyes fixed on the dunes and the waterhole. It ended up being quite a quiet night in camp - but the highlight by far was when a beautiful barn owl landed right next to us on our deck after dinner and regarded us with such curiosity - we daren’t breathe or move and an obsession was born that very moment - for me to catch a barn owl on camera.

]]>2012-08-27T16:19:03+02:002012-08-27T16:19:03+02:00https://www.sanparks.org/forums/viewtopic.php?t=64886&p=1776260#p1776260Son godin and ann-marie - regarding the dove and the gabar goshawk, this was one of those shots that was a case of being in the right place at the right time. We were taking pictures the hawk as it flew up and down (it was very territorial around the 13th borehole) but had no idea we'd caught this shot until we got home. We thought it was scaring the doves off opposed to capturing them. As a result, I honestly have no idea if the dove survived.

Son godin - The cheetah at Nossob was literally about 5k from the Nossob Northern gate - they were heading north on the riverbed but we lost them after 1k or so due to the long grasses. It was a mother and 4 young cubs. We saw no more cats in the vicinity whilst we were there....I'd like to think they are the same ones.

Creasted Val - stay tuned ...my subsequent posts feature more owls and a few hints on where to spot them. One particular encounter will have you laughing when you hear the lengths I went too to spot these wonderful creatures

stelliegp123 - To answer your questions, I would say it's best never to compare Kruger and KTP, they are two very different encounters. Kruger is more plentiful and has much more of a variety of animals....KTP you have to work much harder to find the sightings but in a way, you appreciate them more when you do see animals. To be honest, I found the first few days in KTP really hard after being used to Kruger, but the longer you are there the more you grow to love the place. The solitude and the lack of tourists (it feels as if you have the place to yourself) is a experience you rarely receive in Kruger and the stillness is a gift. There are rarely any cars around sightings so you often have the experience to yourself. As a keen photographer I also found the sand a beautiful backdrop to photo against (vs the greenery of central and northern Kruger). However the one thing I did miss ever so much was elephants. If KTP had ellies it'd be perfect. I love Kruger's accommodation, but KTP's blew me away. Killiekrankie is my most favourite place in the world to stay, and the KTP tented camp is also highly recommended.June is a good time to visit - rarely busy but cold - ever so cold. Wrap up warm! However, the bonus of the wintertime is that you can see bat eared foxes during the day (they are normally nocturnal) and the grasses are lower affording you better sightings (especially if you are in a car).I would sum it up by saying that Kruger is a haven for wildlife, and KTP is a full blown adventure! You'll love it!

Charbel, I understand anne-marie has offered some advice on the 14th borehole...it is certainly something that had me perplexed the first few days we were there (I had assumed that somehow the waterholes must be numbered)...on the KTP it's the one called Dertiende Boorgat See this map http://www.sanparks.org/images/parks/kg ... kmap08.jpg

Please do keep the questions and comments coming ...happy to help where I can!

The next day we were booked into the honeymoon tent at Kalahari Tented Camp (as a treat for our 10th wedding anniversary) so we packed the car at first light, grabbed our coffee and rusks and headed south to explore the surrounding area.

I’d been informed by the forumites that there was an old sociable weavers nest by the 14th borehole in which barn owls nested. I was unbelievably inpatient to get there and, was it not for my husband driving, I’d have headed straight there and ‘camped’ out all day.

As it was we had a very enjoyable morning meandering around the loops past the nearby waterholes, enjoying lots of close encounters with fearless springbok, eagles and gemsbok. We also tried a bit of tracking - scouring the sandy roads for cat prints - and struck lucky with a set of what we believed to be fresh leopard prints and scat on the approach to the 13th borehole. We waited around for an hour or two in the vicinity to see if there was any evidence that the leopard was still around. She wasn’t - at least not in a location we could see her.

We pressed onwards towards the 14th borehole with high hopes for our very first barn owl sighting...

The nest is actually on the left of the main road (as you are heading north to Mata Mata) at the southern junction to the loop road on which the 14th borehole is located. It’s very large and easy to spot once you know where to look but might be difficult to spot in the summer due to the overhanging branches. We pulled up, switched off the car engine and waited in silence, cameras and binoculars at the ready. The entrance to the nest was covered in fresh droppings so we knew someone was home or had visited recently. For now it would be a waiting game.

And wait we did...for hours. But to no avail. There was no sign of any activity or resident. Time pressed on and we reluctantly decided to head back north for lunch.

A few km’s on and we heard the most ear piercing and terrified scream - of which animal we had no idea. We slammed the brakes on and grabbed our binoculars - Ali took to the right hand side of the car - me the left. It was then we noticed three jackals on the hillside, but they could not account for the terrifying noise that ensued. We scanned the horizon looking for something else - something else was happening and we’d not yet pieced together the jigsaw.

Suddenly it all fell into place - on the hillside two adult bat eared foxes paced nervously, stopping to fix their gaze into the bushes behind the jackals every 30 seconds or so. The bushes were the source of the screams - a juvenile bat eared fox had been captured by the jackals and was being eaten alive. My eyes filled with tears as we watched - not because of the horrid scene unfolding before us (this is, after all, the circle of life), but because of the constant screaming of the baby fox and the relentlessness of its parents to give up the flight to retrieve it. The fox was brave to the very end and fought off the jackal family as long as its strength would allow it. As quickly as it had started it ended, and the ear piercing silence fell upon the bush once more - this is when we and the bat eared fox parents knew the end had come. The cub was dead and its suffering ended. As the parents turned to slowly walk away we also started our engine and left the cub in peace.

This whole episode threw me into turmoil - I thought jackals were scavengers. It never dawned on me that they are also fearless hunters. To think, I had entertained one around our braai in Nossob just nights before, as if it was a house dog. This is why I love Africa so much - it challenges your preconceptions and constantly forces you to reconsider your expectations about the natural world.

With hearts heavy and adrenaline pumping we set off back to camp to check in once more. However, a few kms on we spotted a few cars gathered by the roadside. Upon arrival they pointed out to us a cheetah feasting on a carcass in the distance. They’d not witnessed the kill - but judging by the state of the carcass it was more than a few hours old. We stayed for a while but decided to press on...familiar with cheetah’s eating habits we knew she wouldn't be going anywhere soon given how much meat was on the carcass and the heat of the afternoon sun. We therefore took a note of her location on our map and set the car’s trip-o-meter, vowing to return to her as late as possible in the afternoon when she might become active once more.

Return we did - about 4pm that afternoon. She was still there, sleeping by the, now stripped, carcass. Being only car present, we turned off our engine and waited. 40 minutes later we witnessed her sleepy eyes open and we sprung into action...cameras set up we waited and waited in the hope that she might walk towards us.

Someone up there was looking down on us with good fortune that day because she stretched and turned straight towards us. After a few tense minutes (will she / won’t she?!) she started to walk across the riverbed straight towards us. By now the golden hour was upon us and the landscape was cast in the most incredible gold hue. I heard myself whispering out-loud, willing the cheetah to step out of the occasional shadows into the incredible late afternoon light. Time and time again she obeyed. It was an incredible sighting - the light danced off the fine fur around her head and body, creating an almost angelic glow around her. She paused every now and again, but her progress towards us was otherwise steady and constant. Undeterred by our presence (and because no other cars arrived in the interim) she did not think twice about walking right up to, and by our car. You could see the dried blood around her face, contrasting against the glistening whilst teeth she bared every now and then. It was a rare and amazing encounter with a beautiful animal. One which I will remember for a lifetime.

That night sleep was impossible - the combination of the freezing cold and the adrenaline pumping from the day’s sightings meant we had a very broken sleep. However, a warm bath in the honeymoon tent (whilst wearing a wooly hat!) helped to calm me somewhat.